Welcome to Wūzhèn
Like many of the other famous water towns, Wūzhèn (乌镇) was part of the Grand Canal and prospered from trade and silk production. It's a major tourist attraction, and with its crowds and rows of souvenir shops its easy to write off Wūzhèn as inauthentic. But then you turn a corner and get a view of, say, an ancient stone bridge curving over a canal or a row of weathered Qing dynasty wooden homes, and realise: this place really is beautiful. It's also easily explored, with good transit links and plenty of English on the ground.
Top experiences in Wūzhèn
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Wūzhèn activities
Shanghai to Wuzhen, Xitang: Private 12-Hour Tour, Meal, Cruise
Your friendly private guide picks you up from your city hotel at 9:30am, and head up to Wuzhen, a 1,300 years old water town located in northern Zhejiang province. Upon arrival, stroll along the old town and learn about the Wuzhen’s history from your guide. Enjoy a local lunch and then take a relaxing boat ride along the canals in the afternoon. You can take some nice photos in this charm-laden town. Browse around the narrow, cobbled pathways and cross stone-arched bridges. In the late afternoon, transfer to Xitang, a over 2,000 years delightful water village. The sunset here is amazing! Your guide will share with you about Xitang’s importance as a window into traditional life around the River Yangtze. As you wander, see some of the sites used as locations in the 2006 movie, Mission Impossible III, starring Tom Cruise. Lastly, have a romantic dinner right by the riverside and overlook the entire ancient town when lights on at night. After dinner, you can take a walk to see the local shops and bars to experience the night life here. When your tour is finished, you will be transferred back to your hotel in Shanghai city.
Wuzhen Water Town Day Tour from Hangzhou
Your Wuzhen water town tour begins with coach pickup from your Hangzhou hotel. Stop at the Hundred-Bed Museum (Zhao Hall), the first museum in China to collect and exhibit ancient beds of the Jiangnan area. See the luxurious carvings and elaborate designs on these antique beds and listen as your expert guide shares stories reflecting this unique cultural account of ancient Chinese civilization.Later on visit the Sanbai Wine Workshop, the only remaining winery in Wuzhen, built during the Song Dynasty. Brewing liquor was a huge industry in Wuzhen during the Ming Dynasty. There were over 20 distilleries in operation at the time. Witness how wine is made using traditional techniques.Afterwards visit the Hongyuan Thai dye house to see the time-honored art of making indigo-dyed printed calico. Wuzhen is one of the principal sources of this flower-printed blue cloth. Elderly women still carry on the folk tradition of carefully weaving this textile. Watch the painstaking method of creating it and marvel at the final product of striking embossed blue cloth.After a local Chinese style lunch, engage yourself in a unique display of Chinese performing arts - the shadow play show. This is an exceptional storytelling experience as the characters are handmade leather puppets behind a screen with a cast light upon them forming silhouettes. Accompanied by Chinese traditional instruments, such as the erhu and the flute, shadow play is a universally renowned Chinese cultural spectacle.Finally no visit to a water town will be complete without taking a boat ride (optional) down the river. Board a rowboat and relax as you enjoy the sights of the old town and see people going about their daily lives. Float over the calm water and pass under picturesque stone bridges. After your boat ride take a walk around the town and then we will drive you back to your hotel in Hangzhou.
One-Day Wuzhen Water Town Tour from Shanghai
One day prior to the tour, your tour guide will call you or send you an email to confirm the place where you will meet for the tour. It takes around 2 hours to go to the east part of Wuzhen water town from Shanghai by car, so it is recommended to depart for Wuzhen at 8:30am.You will watch an acrobatic show on a boat when you arrive at Wuzhen. An acrobat climbs to the top of a high bamboo post and do some acrobatic actions. The bamboo is shaking and the boat is shaking and your heart might be also shaking.After the breath-taking acrobatic show, it is time to admire some artworks. Over 20 ancient beds are collected in the Ancient Bed Museum in Wuzhen. The wood carvings on these beds are flowers, trees and the scene of some old stories. It is said that a carpenter spent 3 years working on the wood carvings on the most precious bed in the museum. Continue to soak up the atmosphere of local culture in the Folk Custom Museum, where you can learn how weddings, birthday parties and funerals were held in ancient times.Delicacy is also a part of culture. You tour guide will find you a local restaurant for lunch, where you will both know more about the local culture and taste delicious food.With a history of over 1,000 years, the Hongyuantai Dye House, your first destination for the afternoon’s tour, is almost as old as Wuzhen water town. You will see the process of dyeing a cloth in ancient times. The blue flower-printed clothes in the dye house are good souvenirs for your family or friends (No compulsive buys).Wood carving is not only used to decorate beds but also other parts inside an ancient house. Your next destination Wood Carving Museum was an owned by a rich merchant in ancient times. The wood carvings were used to decorate every part of the house, such as doors, chairs, windows and tables. Compared to the carvings on beds, carvings on other furniture are larger and more complicated.Chinese Kung Fu plays a role of farewell show for this tour. Most Kung Fu moves for this show were developed from the Kung Fu of Shaolin Temple. You can admire authentic Shaolin Kung Fu without going to Shaolin Temple. Your tour guide will accompanied you to the place where you stay in Shanghai after the tour.
Wuzhen Water Town 2-Day Tour by Bullet Train from Shanghai
Wuzhen is well known for its ancient stone bridges, stone pathways, and delicate wood carvings. Originally it is connected by rivers and canal, and divided into 4 areas: Dongzha, Xizha, Nanzha, and Beizha. "Zha" is wooden dam in Chinese, "Dong" is East, "Xi" is West, "Nan" is Souch, and "Bei" is North. Till now Xizha and Dongzha are the best reserved areas.Day 1Make your own way to Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station (make sure you get to the station 30 minutes prior to train departure time). Use your passport to redeem your first-class paper ticket (round trips) at the ticketing counter. Your eTicket will be reserved in advance by your local tour operator. It takes 40 minutes by the fastest bullet train from Shanghai to Tongxiang Railway Station (the closest railway station to Wuzhen).Upon arrival at Tongxiang Railway Station, you will make your own way to your hotel. Enjoy free time for the rest of the day.You will stay overnight in an oriental-style hotel in a well-reserved district of Xizha, located in ancient town of Wuzhen. It offers you a chance to enjoy the beauty of Wuzhen after dark. Day 2 (B)Free time to explore Wuzhen by yourself. Your admission ticket is available for both Xizha and Dongzha. Some highlights you can see include the Hundred-Bed Museum, Wine Distillery Workshop, Hongyuantai Dyehouse, and a shadow play show. Hundred-Bed Museum, known as Zhao's Hall, has a numerous collection of ancient beds made in Ming and Qing dynasties and modern times, reflecting the centuries-old Chinese civilization. As the only one distillery still in existence, Gaogongsheng Distillery produces a kind of alcohol named Sanbai Wine, Duta Alcohol or Three Whites Wine because it is made with white rice, white flour and white water (pure water). The alcohol is famous for its soft and lasting mellowness. Take a workshop here. Hongyuantai Dyehouse was founded in the Song Dynasty, where is a great place to appreciate how Chinese people make cloth in a traditional way and witness the process of how the local people make Chinese blue calico.Shadow Play is a form of entertainment created by projecting the shadow of cattle- or sheep-hide puppets on to a screen. You will be picked up from your hotel lobby in the late afternoon, and be transferred to Tongxiang railway station. Then take bullet train back to Shanghai.For accommodation options, you can choose one from following upon booking: • Standard Class: TongAn Hotel Package for twin beds • Deluxe Class: Splendid Clubhouse Package for King Size bed. Kindly remind round trip transfers between your hotel in Shanghai and Hongqiao Railway Station will be arranged by yourself Please inform your prefered train departure time for day 1 and day 2 upon reservation.
Private Day Excursion to Wuzhen Water Town from Shanghai
The ancient, well-protected village of Wuzhen lies north of Zhejiang province, only about 3 hours from Shanghai. Enter a romantic atmosphere of ancient docks, waterside pavilions, and corridors that stretch out for miles, all typical of Jiangnan water towns. Visit the Ancient Bed Exhibition Hall, a unique museum filled with ancient beds from the Jiangnan area, here we will experience a variety of stories and traditions. Afterwards, enjoy visiting the wood carving hall, which is known for the wood carvings that cover most of its structure. Not only is it constructed of beautiful carvings, it also now holds them as a wood carving and architectural museum. Our visit to a traditional performance stage will show you a small square stage where actors perform Shaoxing, Peking and flower-drum operas. Finally, visit the Gongsheng Winery where you will have the chance to drink San Bai Wine and learn about the wine making process. This experience is also available in a private format. Immerse yourself in the history of Shanghai with the assistance of your own personal guide!
Independent Tour of Wuzhen and Xitang Water Town from Shanghai
In the morning, your friendly private driver picks you up from your hotel in Shanghai, and head up to Wuzhen, a 1,300 years old water town located in northern Zhejiang province. Upon arrival, stroll along the old town and learn about the Wuzhen’s history from your guide. Enjoy a local lunch and then take a relaxing boat ride along the canals in the afternoon. You can take some nice photos in this charm-laden town. Browse around the narrow, cobbled pathways and cross stone-arched bridges. In the late afternoon, transfer to Xitang, a over 2,000 years delightful water village. It's a window into traditional life around the River Yangtze, and the sunset here is amazing! Xitang’s importance as a window into traditional life around the River Yangtze. As you wander, see some of the sites used as locations in the 2006 movie, Mission Impossible III, starring Tom Cruise. Lastly, you can choose to have a romantic dinner (at your own cost) right by the riverside and overlook the entire ancient town when lights on at night. Or you can take a walk to see the local shops and bars to experience the night life here. When your tour is finished, you will be transferred back to your hotel in Shanghai. Please note that your driver speaks basic English only, and if you have any questions on the road, you can use the driver's mobile phone to reach out the local operator.